The Unite! alliance successfully hosted its in-person matchmaking workshop at Politecnico di Torino on 12–13 May 2026. Serving as a strategic follow-up to a virtual session held on 19 March 2026, which involved over 170 researchers, this physical workshop was designed to foster deep collaboration on upcoming funding possibilities.
Objectives & Focus Topics
The primary goal of the workshop was to facilitate hands-on discussions among emerging research consortia to develop joint Horizon Europe proposals and establish concrete roadmaps for the consortia.
Five distinct consortia were selected to meet and advance proposals across five targeted Horizon Europe topics:
- HORIZON-NEB-2026-01-REGEN-03: Innovative solutions for the sustainable and beautiful use of vertical space.
- HORIZON-NEB-2026-01-PARTICIPATION-02: Innovative approaches for the spatial design of neighbourhoods.
- HORIZON-NEB-2027-01-REGEN-01: Combining conventional and innovative construction materials, products, and techniques for sustainable buildings.
- HORIZON-MISS-2026-01-CLIMA-05: Demonstrating solutions to protect and preserve cultural heritage from the impacts of climate change.
- HORIZON-RAISE-2027-01-01: Automated Scientific Discovery (RAISE pilot) (RIA).
Structure
The workshop included welcome remarks by Prof. Roberto Zanino, Unite! Key Liaison Officer at Politecnico di Torino, an introductory presentation by the Unite! Secretariat and the training “Stress-Test your Proposal. A Critical Evaluation Exercise” led by Nuno Cunha, grant-writing consultant and CEO of AAVANZ.
The main part of the workshop consisted in work sessions of the five consortia supported by experts.
The event ended with coordinator´s pitches, wrap-up and discussion on the next steps.
Participation
- Total number of onsite attendees: 33
- Representatives, experts and administrative staff: 9
- Research consortia members: 24 researchers from 8 institutions
- Participating Institutions: ULisboa, PoliTO, Wroclaw Tech, UPC Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, TU Graz, UPM – Madrid Polytechnic, National Institute of Heritage–RO, Master Builder Solutions Italia.
Key Outcomes
The overwhelmingly positive feedback confirms the value of focused, in-person collaboration in strengthening European research networks and accelerating the development of competitive Horizon Europe proposals. Beyond advancing project ideas, the workshop reinforced the Unite! alliance’s role as a catalyst for interdisciplinary cooperation and long-term strategic partnerships across academia, industry, and cultural institutions.
„The UNITE! initiative brought together researchers and institutions that would probably never have met through conventional academic networking dynamics. By moving beyond disciplinary comfort zones, the event created new connections between cultural heritage, climate adaptation, landscape history, engineering, urban planning, ecology, and citizen engagement.
The structure of the workshop — combining formal sessions, thematic discussions, and informal exchanges — accelerated the formation of a coherent consortium. Partners began identifying complementarities in expertise, discussing work package structures, refining case-study selection, and aligning methodologies.
The matchmaking process generated not only partnerships, but also a genuine sense of intellectual convergence and collective motivation around an ambitious interdisciplinary consortium.”
Member of one of the participating research consortia
The success of the initiative highlights how international alliances such as Unite! can transform networking into concrete collaborative action, contributing innovative solutions to Europe’s sustainability, resilience, and digital transformation goals.
Overall, the event produced high satisfaction among participants, with researchers expressing strong interest in attending similar future initiatives.
